Flexural behavior of 3D Panel slabs under uniformly distributed gravity loads

After each major earthquake light weight structures that can be constructed in a short time period are needed to accommodate homeless people affect by the earthquake. 3D panel structures are one type of theses structures. The 3D panel is made of a 3 mm diameter steel wire space truss integrated with a polystyrene core sheet and it is converted to a structural wall after shotcreting it with concrete or cement mortar. In practice the 3D panels are used to construct one or two storey houses. In construction practice additional steel reinforcements are added to the 3D panels to construct roof or floor slabs. In this paper 3D panel slabs with steel reinforcements are tested under distributed gravity loads. Test results show that the steel reinforced 3D panels are able to withstand safely gravity loads specified by international codes, and mid span deflection values were less than the limits specified by international standards. Furthermore the 3D panel slabs show almost full composite behavior under flexural moment effects.